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Sandshrew Line/GSC
In Gold and Crystal, Sandshrew can only be found in Union Cave and, once in Kanto, in Mt. Moon. In Silver, it can only be found in the Goldenrod Game Corner, where it can be exchanged for 700 Coins. Sadly one of the lines that got a downgrade from Generation I, where the overpowered Dig would wreck everything except birds. Sandslash also no longer gets Rock Slide via TM, or the guaranteed critical Slash it used to know. In spite of that, though, the line still has a few tricks up its sleeve in old Johto, and gets considerably better around the Goldenrod area, where it can both evolve and learn Dig via TM; there is much it can do after it gets Curse as well, but then again, only against physical Pokémon, as special hitters are not really Sandslash's cup of tea. Regardless, compared to its alternate version cousin - that is, Arbok - Sandslash is definitely not the one to get the short end of the stick, retaining good, well-rounded physical stats. Important Matchups Johto * Gym #2 - Bugsy (Azalea Town, Bug-type): Since Bugsy leads with Metapod, a completely harmless Pokémon, Sandshrew can profit of it to set up Defense Curls until it hits +6 in Defense, then eventually KO Metapod with Scratch. Kakuna can be KOed with Scratch, as well; if Poison Sting poisons Sandshrew, heal before Scyther comes out. Scyther's Fury Cutter deals ridiculous damage to Sandshrew if its Defense is maxed out, and since Scyther knows Leer, Sandshrew's best possible strategy is spamming Sand-Attack (which Scyther is not immune to, unlike Mud-Slap) against it until its accuracy drops to -6; at that point, Scyther will hardly be able to stack Fury Cutter damage for more than two consecutive turns, and Sandshrew will be able to KO it safely. Keep a teammate that can handle a switch out and switch-in if need be, in case Sandshrew's Defense drops to -1 or lower after all the Sand-Attack turns. * Rival (Azalea Town): Mud-Slap is an average 3HKO against Gastly, which may use Hypnosis first, but cannot deal much damage with Lick anyway. Sandshrew's Scratch outdamages Zubat's Bite, as well, but Zubat may pull off a victory with Supersonic-induced confusion and Bite flinches; be wary of this possible combination when Sandshrew's health is low. Bayleef and Croconaw murder Sandshrew with their respective STABs, Razor Leaf and Water Gun; Quilava 4-5HKOs with Ember, but Sandshrew might win if lucky, as Mud-Slap lowers accuracy as well as dealing reasonable damage. * Gym #3 - Whitney (Goldenrod City, Normal-type): Sandshrew can pull off another solo, but luck will be more of a factor in this battle than against Bugsy. In order to do so, it once again needs to Defense Curl until its Defense is maximised; Clefairy's Encore and Metronome are the main issues: while Encore eventually wears off, Metronome may copy Explosion and thus kill Sandshrew. If it does not, Sandshrew can survive any one other move, including Selfdestruct (which has an OHKO chance, but not a guarantee) and strong special moves such as Hydro Pump (maximum possible damage hovers around 85%). Sandshrew needs to be healed in the process, but if successful in this setup, it can then KO both Clefairy and Miltank with Return or Dig. Clefairy is a 3HKO with both, and those moves are preferable to Rollout because even though Rollout also 3HKOs and then kills Miltank in one or two turns, it would not permit Sandshrew to heal in between turns, in case Clefairy's Metronome pulls a strong special move. Sandshrew can still use Rollout against Miltank, as it will also help it bypass Miltank's Milk Drink, which would quickly deplete Sandshrew's Dig PPs. If Sandslash is already evolved, the strategy to use remains the same, only easier to put into practice. * Rival (Burned Tower): Sandslash 1-2HKOs Haunter with Dig, and also destroys Magnemite. Zubat and Quilava are 2HKOed, respectively by Return and Dig. Sandslash should not fight Bayleef or Croconaw, both of which outpower it with their respective STAB moves. * Gym #4 - Morty (Ecruteak City, Ghost-type): Dig OHKOs Gastly and the level 21 Haunter; it only 2HKOs the second Haunter, but its moveset is not problematic for Sandslash. Gengar is also 2HKOed, though Sandslash should be kept awake from its Hypnosis in order to avoid getting hit by Dream Eater; holding a Mint Berry will make this easier. * Eusine (Cianwood City, Crystal only): Sandslash can 2-3HKO Drowzee with Return after getting past its Hypnosis; healing sleep as soon as possible is advised, to prevent Drowzee from using Dream Eater. Haunter is 1-2HKOed with Dig; Electrode is always a 2HKO. * Gym #5 - Chuck (Cianwood City, Fighting-type): Return 3HKOs Primeape, long before its Leer and Karate Chop can threaten Sandslash. Poliwrath must be avoided, as it 2HKOs with Surf. * Gym #6 - Jasmine (Olivine City, Steel-type): Dig is an OHKO against both of the Magnemite and an average 4HKO against Steelix, though its Iron Tail borders on 3HKO range. It is advised that Sandslash use Defense Curl at least twice against either Magnemite before scoring the kill, so that it may take on Steelix more safely; this may make it require status healers, as the Magnemite know Supersonic. * Rocket Executive battle #1 (Team Rocket HQ): Zubat and Koffing are 2HKOed by Return and Dig respectively; Sandslash can take even a critical Selfdestruct from Koffing, so there is no way it can lose. Raticate is 2-3HKOed by Return or Dig. * Rocket Executive battle #2 (Team Rocket HQ): Sandslash's Dig 2HKOs Arbok, and Return 2-3HKOs Gloom and Murkrow (against Murkrow, the 2HKO is more likely). Gloom's only Grass STAB is Absorb, which deals little to no damage to Sandslash. * Gym #7 - Pryce (Mahogany Town, Ice-type): Sandslash can 3HKO Seel with Return, since its non-STAB Aurora Beam is relatively weak. Dewgong is already too strong, averagely 2HKOing with the move, and Piloswine's Blizzard comes close to an OHKO; avoid both of them. * Rocket Executive battle #3 (Goldenrod Radio Tower): Dig is a 2HKO against all of the Koffing and a 2-3HKO against Weezing, depending on Sandslash's level and stats. Sandslash can take up to two Selfdestructs from the Koffing, or one Explosion from Weezing if its health is close to full; it should be switched out or healed if the damage starts piling up. * Rival (Goldenrod Underground): Golbat is 3HKOed by Return, providing its Confuse Ray does not impair Sandslash's functioning and/or that Bite does not score too many flinches. Dig also OHKOs Magnemite and 1-2HKOs Haunter; Sneasel is 3HKOed by either Dig or Return, and knows no Ice STAB. Quilava is an easy 2HKO, and Sandslash can beat even Meganium, whose only damaging move is Body Slam; Return will averagely 4HKO if Meganium's Reflect is not up, but even if it is, Sandslash can play the stall game with Defense Curl until the screen turns expire. Feraligatr still knows Water Gun, instead, and is just not Sandslash's cup of tea. * Rocket Executive battle #4 (Goldenrod Radio Tower): Arbok remains a 2HKO with Dig, and Murkrow can be 2-3HKOed with Return. Vileplume can also be 3-4HKOed with Return, as its only Grass STAB is still Absorb, but it will be more difficult to beat than Gloom, as it also knows Sleep Powder. * Rocket Executive battle #5 (Goldenrod Radio Tower): Dig destroys Houndour and 2HKOs Koffing and Houndoom. * Suicune (Bell Tower, Crystal only): No. Suicune 2HKOs with BubbleBeam, and reaches OHKO range if Rain Dance is put up. Sandslash's moves are not strong enough for this. * Gym #8 - Clair (Blackthorn City, Dragon-type): Although Return can 3HKO any of the three Dragonair, the lead knows Surf and one of the other two knows Ice Beam, and both of them are moves that put Sandslash at a decisive disadvantage. The third Dragonair only has Thunderbolt as its special non-STAB move, and thus can only really damage Sandslash with DragonBreath; if that Dragonair is identified, Sandslash can beat it without problems. Kingdra destroys Sandslash with Surf instead. * Rival (Victory Road): Earthquake OHKOs Magneton and Haunter, 1-2HKOs Kadabra and 2HKOs Sneasel, none of which are dangerous for Sandslash. Golbat is 3HKOed by Return, once again after getting past its likely Confuse Ray shenanigans. Earthquake also scores an easy 2HKO against Typhlosion, but Sandslash needs to steer clear from Meganium and Feraligatr. * Elite Four Will (Indigo Plateau, Psychic-type): Though both of the Xatu know Confuse Ray, Sandslash can get past them if it manages to 3HKO with Return; Exeggutor is also an average 3HKO, but so is its Psychic, so Sandslash should fight it with caution when in low health. Slowbro is 3HKOed by Earthquake; neither Exeggutor nor Slowbro have STAB moves besides Psychic. Jynx should not be fought: Ice Punch 2HKOs Sandslash, whose chances of OHKOing with Earthquake are far too small to take the risk. * Elite Four Koga (Indigo Plateau, Poison-type): Earthquake 2HKOs Ariados and Venomoth, and 1-2HKOs Muk. It can also 3HKO Forretress, and Sandslash is capable of surviving a non-critical Explosion from it. Crobat knows Double Team, and out of all of Koga's Pokémon, is the only one likely to manage using the move enough times to actually become hard to hit; Sandslash's Return, normally a 3HKO, is outclassed by Toxic if misses happen frequently. * Elite Four Bruno (Indigo Plateau, Fighting-type): Hitmontop, Hitmonchan, Hitmonlee and Onix are all 2HKOed by Earthquake. They are all relatively harmless, except Hitmonlee, which may get in the way of Sandslash's sweeping with Swagger; beating it becomes trivial after healing confusion, particularly if Sandslash is holding a Bitter Berry. Machamp is 3HKOed instead, but its Cross Chop can 3-4HKO and has a high critical hit ratio, so Sandslash should be careful and preferably heal anywhere below 66% of its maximum health; Cross Chop can miss and its PP deplete easily, so Sandslash should not have major issues after they are down to zero. * Elite Four Karen (Indigo Plateau, Dark-type): Bring an X Accuracy in case Umbreon uses both Mean Look and Sand-Attack; Earthquake 3HKOs it, but Sandlash needs to actually hit to accomplish that. Vileplume is a 2-3HKO with Earthquake and also 2-3HKOs with Petal Dance; although Sandslash is faster, this risk should not be taken unless no better options are available. Murkrow is 2HKOed with Return. Gengar is an OHKO with Earthquake, but Sandslash should attack it only if paralysed or after its Destiny Bond PP are depleted. Lastly, Houndoom is OHKOed by Earthquake, as well. * Champion Lance (Indigo Plateau, Flying-type): Gyarados' Surf is much stronger than any of Sandslash's moves. Sandslash can take on either of the level 47 Dragonite with Return, which 4-5HKOs, but only the one with Thunder can be beaten, as the other has the 2HKO Blizzard; there is no way of telling them apart, short of them using their "signature" move. The ace Dragonite is also impossible, as it 3HKOs Sandslash with Outrage. Sandslash can, however, beat Aerodactyl with Return or DynamicPunch, as two Returns outdamage one of Aerodactyl's Hyper Beams; it can also theoretically 2HKO Charizard with Rollout, but only if it is the last Pokémon standing: otherwise, a stage 3 Rollout will accomplish very little against whatever Pokémon Lance has in store next (short of Aerodactyl itself), and Sandslash will likely get killed. Kanto From this point onwards, you can fight the gyms in any order, though you will need to retrieve the Machine Parts from the Cerulean City gym before you have access to the earlier portion of Kanto. Feel free to anticipate or postpone any battles as needed. * Gym #9 - Brock (Pewter City, Rock-type): Earthquake 2HKOs all of Brock's Pokémon, with an OHKO chance against Graveler and Rhyhorn. Sandslash will need to be healed at least once to solo, though, as Omastar's Surf can take away the best part of its health bar and Kabutops' own is a 2-3HKO; Sandslash should preferably leave either Omastar or Kabutops to a teammate, to incur in a lesser amount of risks against them. If Sandslash sets up one Curse, its moves become OHKOs instead. * Rival (Mt. Moon, optional): Earthquake still OHKOs Magneton and the now-evolved Gengar, and also 2HKOs Sneasel, Alakazam and Typhlosion (the latter is an OHKO chance). Return still 3HKOs Golbat, but once again, Sandslash needs to be wary of confusion induced by Confuse Ray, if its health is low. Sandslash can now outdamage and 3HKO Feraligatr with Earthquake, but cannot do so with Meganium, whose Razor Leaf will still get the best of Sandslash. * Gym #10 - Misty (Cerulean City, Water-type): Golduck, Lapras and Starmie all 2HKO Sandslash mercilessly. Quagsire can theoretically be beaten, but both its Surf and Sandslash's Earthquake oscillate between 2HKO and 3HKO range, so the outcome of the battle will be up to chance. * Gym #11 - Lt. Surge (Vermilion City, Electric-type): Earthquake OHKOs everything and, even in a pinch, Sandslash is near-guaranteed to survive two Explosions from the respective Electrode. * Gym #12 - Erika (Celadon City, Grass-type): Both Tangela and Bellossom outpower Sandslash with Giga Drain and Petal Dance, respectively. Sandslash can, however, 2-3HKO Victreebel with Earthquake and/or 4HKO Jumpluff with Return; Victreebel is the riskiest, however, as its Razor Leaf 3HKOs normally but also has high critical hit ratio. Jumpluff is hard to beat, due to Leech Seed and Giga Drain slowly chipping away Sandslash's health, but it can be attempted and is more predictable than Victreebel. * Gym #13 - Janine (Fuchsia City, Poison-type): Earthquake OHKOs the two Weezing, 1-2HKOs Ariados and 2HKOs Venomoth. Crobat can be 3HKOed with Return, once again with the due preparation in case it uses Confuse Ray. * Gym #14 - Sabrina (Saffron City, Psychic-type): Espeon is easily 2HKOed with Earthquake, but Mr. Mime and Alakazam both know Reflect, which reduces Earthquake to a 3-4HKO; both of them also outspeed, so Sandslash will deal relatively little damage to them if they lead with the move. Either use another Pokémon to fight them, or prepare a switch-out, and preferably avoid fighting Alakazam with Sandslash anyway, since its Psychic can 2HKO with high damage rolls. * Gym #15 - Blaine (Seafoam Islands, Fire-type): Earthquake OHKOs Magcargo and Magmar, and 2HKOs Rapidash. Rapidash's Fire Blast, the strongest move of Blaine's entire team, is a 2-3HKO against Sandslash, but becomes a 2HKO under Sunny Day; if Magmar uses the move, Sandslash should switch out momentarily and eventually get back on the battlefield, either after Sunny Day turns expire or when Rapidash runs out of Fire Blast PP. * Gym #16 - Blue (Viridian City): Pidgeot can be averagely 4HKOed with Return, as Sandslash would outdamage even if Pidgeot kept relying on Mirror Move to copy it; Earthquake 2HKOs Rhydon and Arcanine instead. Sandslash should not fight Alakazam, Gyarados or Exeggutor; Alakazam can put up Reflect to shield itself from Earthquakes and even Disable the move altogether, whereas both Gyarados and Exeggutor rely on weather moves, respectively Rain Dance and Sunny Day, and Sandslash's slow battle style would only offer them an opportunity to set up and then OHKO. Although Alakazam may be defeatable after a prior Curse setup of at least +2, Pidgeot is the only Pokémon that can be reasonably exploited for this purpose, and Sandslash's Curses will all be for naught if one of Blue's special hitters is switched in after Pidgeot goes down. * Rival (Indigo Plateau, optional): Earthquake remains an OHKO against Magneton and Gengar, and a 2HKO against Sneasel and Typhlosion. While Alakazam is also theoretically 2HKOed, it can win against Sandslash if it puts up Reflect and then starts hitting with Psychic; the latter 3HKOs Sandslash, so the fight can be attempted, but a Reflect opener will force Sandslash to switch. Crobat is theoretically 4HKOed by Return, but Sandslash is unlikely to break through Confuse Ray-induced confusion for long enough to accomplish this, unless healed in between turns; Meganium and Feraligatr are both off limits. * Red (Mt. Silver): Pikachu is easily killed by Earthquake, though it will only 2HKO if it uses Charm. Espeon is highly likely to outsmart Sandslash by putting up Reflect the first turn, and then 3HKOing with Psychic; Sandslash should skip this fight. Snorlax should preferably be fought by spamming Curse, rather than hitting directly; even though Earthquake outdamages Snorlax's Body Slam, Snorlax knows Rest and Earthquake is only a 3-4HKO. At +2 Curses or more, however, Sandslash takes relatively little damage from Body Slam and can 2HKO Snorlax, bypassing Rest; at +5, Earthquake becomes an OHKO. A +5 is not necessary to fight against Snorlax, but does give Sandslash a chance against Red's starters: Venusaur and Blastoise 2HKO with Giga Drain and Surf respectively, whereas Charizard 3HKOs with Flamethrower. Both Venusaur and Blastoise are OHKOed by Earthquake at a minimum of five Curses, though Return can OHKO Charizard only after six. Regardless of the amount of setups, Sandslash will not be able to take on more than two of them, unless its Special Defense is also boosted and/or heal-stalling occurs. Moves Sandshrew's initial moveset consists of Scratch and Defense Curl. At level 11, it learns its only level-up Ground-type move, which is sadly Sand-Attack. At 17, it learns Poison Sting, which may actually be useful for poison-stall in a good few fights; then, as Sandslash, it gets good support in the form of Slash at level 24. The base damage is nice, and it is the best move it will get via level up. At 33, the line gets Swift, which is worse than Slash and only useful against enemies that boost their evasion or lower accuracy; at 42, there is the incredibly useless Fury Swipes, and later on, at 52, the last move the line learns normally: Sandstorm, once again useful for stall sets, but nothing more. The only way for Sandslash to learn any Ground STAB at all is spending TMs on it. The first available move is Mud-Slap, from Falkner's gym, which is actually surprisingly decent until Slash comes around. Later on, Dig becomes available, and in Victory Road, the very good Earthquake will finally grant Sandslash the offensive power it deserves. Before Slash is learned, Sandshrew can benefit from Headbutt, which has the same base power as Slash and is rebuyable. There is some Fighting coverage in the form of DynamicPunch, and also Iron Tail, but both of them are not that accurate, especially the first; they should only be used together with an X Accuracy. Rather, Sandslash's second go-to physical move after Earthquake should be Return: it has great base power, becomes available relatively early, and will cover it well against Flying-types. Rollout is surprisingly a good option when used wisely, thanks to Sandshrew's Defense Curl and good physical bulk; however, the side-effect of locking Sandshrew into battle for up to five turns is a downside to be considered carefully before using it. Curse complements Sandslash's movepool well, as it is naturally slow and will not need to hit first, if it can take hits before offing its enemies. Toxic can also work well for sets that rely on stall. Recommended movesets: ''General purpose: Curse, Earthquake, Return, DynamicPunch / Iron Tail'' ''Toxic Storm stall: Toxic, Sandstorm, Protect, Mud-Slap / Earthquake'' Recommended Teammates * Steel-types: Steel is a good fit together with Ground, since there are no overlapping weaknesses and Steel has many resistances, some of which are useful for Sandslash. Further coverage will be needed against Water-types, though, particularly in the event no Steel-type is available, since they are rare. ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Forretress, Scizor, Magneton, Skarmory * Electric-types: Electric-types cover Sandslash against Water better than Grass-types do; not only they are more useful in general, they also do not suffer from Johto syndrome, unlike Grass-types do. Electric-types in general face very few threats in the game, and are capable of dispatching what Sandslash cannot. ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Raichu, Ampharos, Magneton, Electabuzz, Jolteon (Crystal only) * Special tanks: Sandslash has very good physical bulk, but its special bulk is lacking. Most special hitters, even those that cannot deal super effective damage against Ground, will give it a hard time unless a teammate can take their hits better than Sandslash itself can. ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Clefable, Gyarados, Hypno, Muk, Tentacruel, Lanturn * Fast hitters: Sandslash is also fairly slow. It will be able to outspeed only on occasion, and in some fights, Speed is crucial to victory. It is recommended to support Sandslash with a fast hitter, glass cannon or not, that can deal finishing blows as quickly as needed. ** Good Pokémon that fit this description include, among others: Gengar, Alakazam, Tauros, Electabuzz, Jolteon (Crystal only), Espeon Other Sandshrew's stats Sandslash's stats * At what point in the game should I be evolved? Before Whitney if there are no better counters for her Miltank, or before Morty at the latest. Sandslash can be very useful in both battles, and Sandshrew could potentially also take on Miltank alone, though with significantly higher difficulty than its evolved form. * How good is the Sandshrew line in a Nuzlocke? It has a terrible level-up movepool, but the TMs thankfully compensate for it in part. Its bulk is very good and can turn out useful in many situations, though its slowness only really allows it to take on physical Pokémon; thankfully, they are rather numerous in Johto. * Weaknesses: Water, Grass, Ice * Resistances: Rock, Poison * Immunities: Electric * Neutralities: Normal, Fire, Bug, Fighting, Psychic, Ground, Dark, Flying, Steel, Dragon, Ghost Category:Gold/Silver/Crystal Category:List of Evolutionary Lines with Completed Analyses